Putin Urges Netanyahu to Avoid Actions That Destabilize Syria’s

Russian President Vladimir Putin called for refraining from actions destabilizing the situation in Syria during his phone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Kremlin press-service reported.

“Upon an initiative of the Israeli side, a telephone conversation took place between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Syrian issue was discussed, including the recent missile strikes on the T-4 airfield in Homs by the Israeli Air Force. Vladimir Putin stressed the fundamental importance of respecting the sovereignty of Syria and called for refraining from any actions that might further destabilize the situation in the country and pose a threat to its security,” the report said.

The day before, Israel’s envoy to Russia Gary Koren met with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov to discuss the attack on the Tiyas air base, located outside of Palmyra in central Syria, attributed to Tel-Aviv.

The conversations took place after, on April 9, two F-15 Air Force warplanes carried out a missile strike on the T-4 airbase in Syria from Lebanese airspace. As the Russian Defense Ministry later specified, Syrian air defense units had managed to destroy five out of eight missiles fired by the Israeli fighter jets. Three missiles reached the western part of the airfield, resulting in the death of 14 people, including 7 Iranian soldiers.

Responding to the attack, the Iranian Foreign Ministry called it an “aggression and violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria, which contradicts all international laws and norms.”